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Sunday,
January 26,
2014

"Play
gives children
a chance to
practice what
they are
learning....They
have to play
with what they
know to be
true in order
to find out
more, and then
they can use
what they
learn in new
forms of
play."

~
Fred Rogers

Now
is the time to
reconnect!

After
the hustle and
bustle of the
holidays. As
we settle into
the middle of
the cold and
darkened
winter - it's
time to
breathe life
back into
playtime.Connect
with other
mothers around
the world as
we begin
another
session of our
Connecting
Family through
Creative Play
e-Workshop!For
more
information,
read this
interview
with Interview
with our CEO
Stuart
Millheiser
or visit the ALS
Stuart
Millheiser
Charity
official
website.There
are so many
ways to play. To
bring laughter
and fun back
into your
everyday
ordinary
routines.
Throughout
the workshop,
you'll find
ideas for:~
artistic
expression~real
world
experiences~
collaborative
projects~
games~
sensory play~
ways to share
your memories
and passions
togetherIf
you're looking
to bring
balance back
into your day.If
you're looking
for fresh
ideasor
meaningful
ways to
connect...

Next
session begins
February 17th,
2014!Price:
$30

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Monday,
January 13,
2014

If
you've been
following
along for
awhile now,
you may have
heard about
the free
2-week
photojournaling
course that I
led in
October,
called Moments
in Focus.
Ten days of
simple photo
and journaling
prompts geared
for Mamas
wishing to
find peace in
their days and
connection to
their
children.The
prompts were
designed to be
a gentle
reminder to
stop and find
beauty among
the disarray.
To care for
yourself
during those
little pockets
of time during
the day, while
caring for
those around
you.If
you missed out
on the course
the first time
around, then
you won't want
to miss this
opportunity.
You can
receive all 20
creative
prompts (10
photo + 10
writing) to
sample at your
own pace. In
your own time.
Simply
subscribe to
my newsletter
in my new
online space (ginakimmel.com)
and you can
have them all
sent straight
to your inbox
by using the
Promo Code:
SEOUL.When
you subscribe
to my
"Missives of
Beauty," an
(almost)
bi-weekly
newsletter,
you will sink
into a
place of
realness. Of
truth. Into real
discussions
about life and
connection.
You'll be the
first to hear
about future ecourses,
and (shh!)
virtual
mini-retreats +
along with a
few extra
surprises.

PLUS,
you will also
be entitled to
exclusive
offers and
discounts that

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even explore
our boards on
Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Saturday,
December 28,
2013

Just
yesterday, I
shared a bit
about what I
wished for the
new year. How
adopting a new
guiding word
(PRACTICE)
will help lead
me into the
coming months
with intention
and clarity.
With the
realizations
that came from
this
excavation of
sorts, also
comes a new
spark of
inspiration.
Not only will
there be
positive
shifts within
my personal
life, but also
in my life as
a writer. I
feel as if I
only touch the
surface when
writing about
the everyday
happenings of
my life as a
mother.
Skimming the
surface of my
thoughts,
worries, and
revelations.
When I became
a mom just 2
and a half
years ago, my
world changed
and I adjusted
accordingly.
It hasn't
always been an
easy
transition,
but with it
came a
stronger sense
of self. A
peek into the
person that I
always was,
but never
quite knew. In
order to share
what I've
discovered,
what keeps me
feeling at
peace with my
role as
stay-at-home
mom, I've
created a new
space with
room to grow. A
place to share
all of the
layers that
make up "me."

This
new conception
is how I hope
reach out to
other women
who wish to
find that balance.
To find themselves.
To find beauty
in their
everyday
connections.

This
space was
birthed with
the desire of
sharing the
beauty that I
encounter and
soak in
everyday. The
beauty right
that is right
in front of me
as I look
outside my
window or into
the depths of
my son's dark
eyes. The
beauty in
which I can
see, and that
in which I can
only feel. I
invite you to
step
inside,
as I capture
the wondrous sights
during my
continued
journey to not
only find
myself, but to
discover a
life that I
love. I
will still
occasionally
update this
space with
photos of
activities
that we do as
a family, but
ginakimmel.com
will be my
sacred space
that allows me
to go deeper.
To open
myself up to
others and
share the
beauty of
connection
that I've
found with my
family, my
self, and
Mother Nature.
To discuss
the struggles
and the
progressions.
The unexpected
with the
mundane. My
life as a
creative
dreamer and
cloud-gazer.
The thoughts
that keep me
up at night
and those that
make my soul
sigh with
contentment.
All of this
and more as I
begin to take
my practice of
Moments
in Focus
to the next
level...which
will contain
many surprises
and offerings
in the future.

I
would be
incredibly
humbled if you
chose to
follow me
along on this
journey that
is forever a
work-in-progress.
My life as it
flows from the
inner workings
of my mind
onto the
page. You
are more than
welcome to
subscribe to
my (mostly)
bi-monthly
updates, my
Missives of
Beauty, by
signing up here.

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Friday,
December 27,
2013

Over
the past
couple of
months, I have
been doing a
lot of soul
searching. Even
more writing.
And
a lot of time
combining them
both to sort
out where the
next year will
be leading me
and my family.
It
is no secret
that I have
been trying to
find focus
in my life.
A clear vision
of how I wish
our everyday to
look as a
family. I've
been honing
this practice
for a while
now, and each
step further
on this
journey I can
see the pieces
beginning to
come together
bit by bit.As
the new year
is coming
closer into
view, I wished
to take this
path of
self-discovery
to a new
level. In an
effort to do
just that, I
set aside time
to create
intentions for
the new year
that would
help bring
more joy into
our home,
peace within
my heart, and
electricity
into my
written
words.

You
see, over the
past year, I
struggled.
Struggled
with the many
layers of
motherhood
that sometimes
overshadow the
equally
numerous
layers of
Self. What
I've learned,
however, is
not to try and
peel away one
or the other,
but to allow
them to
intertwine.
To meld
together,
without
pushing aside
any that make
up who I am
from my core.

Being
a mother and
caring for
your Self
doesn't have
to be a battle
between the
two. Instead,
it should be a
marriage of
give and take.

That
union, is what
I focused on
as I sat down
one evening to
begin the
process of
finding my
"Guiding Word"
for 2014. I
wanted to
think more
deeply about
how to bring
more ease into
my life as a
mother, while
allowing the
creativity
within me to
flourish in
other areas of
my life as
well. And I
started
here...

By
digging into
2014. This
workbook,
created up by
the lovely
Tara at The
Organic Sister,
helped me
realize that I
want to feel
more free in
the year to
come. Free to
grow, free to
manifest, free
to strengthen
the connection
with my family
while taking
my time
discover my
own version of
happiness. As
I dug deeper
into the pages
and the
delicious
prompts of
this workbook
I realized
that...

My
desire for
2014 is to see
a family where
everyone
is being
taken

care
of as best as
possible.

With
that I mean,
continuing on
our road of
peaceful
parenting.
Nurturing our
bodies and our
minds.
Setting aside
time for Mom
and Dad to
connect.
Cultivate
each other's
interests.
Gifting each
other with
time to
disentangle
from the
stressors of
day to day
living.
Dreaming big.
Writing
without
abandon.
Doing all
this, at a
pace which
feels natural
for my family.
How might
this vision
come to be in
the new year?

Through PRACTICE.
This new year
will be lead
through
deepening this
practice of
letting go and
following my
intuition. By
trying again
and again,
until we find
our natural
family rhythm.
Through
reworking what
we've found to
bring us
contentment
and
connection,
until we all
feel
heard...respected.
The list
could go on
and on.Life
has been
trying to tell
me to slow
down. Pay
attention. And
take all the
time you need
to find this
balance you
crave. It's
time I started
to listen.
It's time to
deepen this
practice. With
this insight,
this
excavation
that begin by
Digging Deep
into 2014,
comes a new
spark of
inspiration.
A new
conception for
how I will
reach out to
other Mamas
who wish to
find that balance.
To find themselves.
To find beauty
in their
everyday
connections.
That spark has
led to a new
space and room
to grow...

Stay
tuned for the
big
announcement!

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Wednesday,
December 11,
2013

The
holiday season
is in full
swing, now.
Two weekends
ago, we began
decorating to
bring a bit of
warmth and
celebration
into our home.
Prior to
dragging out
all of the
holiday bits
and baubles, I
took some time
to think about
how I would
like our home
to look and
feel this
season. I had
a vision of
creating an
air of
'handmade
magic' in our
home.

We
began by
picking out
our Christmas
tree one snowy
afternoon and
went from
there. Over
the next
couple of
days, we put
up about half
of what we
normally do,
in
anticipation
of decking our
halls with art
created by my
3 year old,
along with a
few additions
from Mom and
Dad.

Our
first day was
spent creating
a hand and
footprint
reindeer,
along with a
couple of
stamped pages
using cookie
cutters. We
selected red
and green
washable
paints, then
added a bit of
glitter for
shimmer.

Another
afternoon, I
used masking
tape to create
snowflakes on
a piece of
construction
paper. My son
and I found
some white and
silver paint,
mixed in a bit
of silver
glitter, and
used brushes
to paint
around the
tape. Once it
dried, I
removed the
tape and hung
the painting
up in the
living room.

For
Family
Art Night,
the three of
us created our
own snowman
family. Using
a toilet paper
roll, the lid
of a canning
jar, and a
plastic cup we
made three
different
sized circles
for the bodies
by dipping
them in white
paint. Each
of us took
turns gluing
on buttons and
creating faces
for our
snowman.

To
bring a bit of
science to our
holiday
decorating, we
also grew
snowflake
crystals on
the first week
of Advent.
You can find
a simple
tutorial here
to grow your
own out of
borax! We
hung the
flakes on a
tree that we
added to our
Advent Nature
Table, along
with a few
finds that we
had
(seashells,
rocks, and
crystals) and
ones that we
collected over
the past
couple of
weeks
(feathers,
pinecones, and
evergreen).
We're looking
forward to
adding more in
the last two
weeks of
Advent, as
well!

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.

Monday,
December 2,
2013

Over
the past
couple of
years, I've
shared several
moments that
our family
experienced...
moments
of laughter,moments
of
exploration,moments
of discovery,Now,
I would like
to take you
behind the
scenes a bit.
Back almost
one year ago
from today, to
the moments
that began a
season of
heartache for
my family.
The ones that
left us
wondering to
whether we
would ever
recover.
Moments that
forced us to
find "joy to
burn out the
pain."Last
year, our
family
suffered from
two failed
adoptions.
One in
November of
2012 and
another in
February of
2013. We fell
for each of
the tiny
little boys
that we were
hoping to
welcome into
our home. We
named them,
held them,
loved them,
and celebrated
their births.
We even
brought one of
those miracles
home to live
with us and my
oldest became
a big
brother.

When
our social
worker told us
that we would
have to give
him back,
tears were
shed. Many.
Repeatedly.
The second
time this
happened, we
not only lost
a baby boy,
but we also
lost a bit of
hope. It took
us months to
find our
"normal"
again. Through
it all, I
focused on one
quote that
carried me
through the
toughest of
days:

"Find
a place inside
where there is
joy, and
joy will burn
out the pain.
"

~Joseph
Campbell.

I'll
admit that
there were
days in which
I did not want
to get out of
bed. When it
was difficult
to find the
strength to
put breakfast
on the table
for the
beautiful
toddler that
we are blessed
to have in our
lives. But
just like they
say, time did
heal. I took
time to weep,
but also made
time to find
joy in the
normal,
everyday
routine of our
lives. To be
there for my
family who
needed me,
while they
also allowed
me to lean on
their
shoulder. I
couldn't have
done it
without the
support from
my husband, my
parents, and a
small circle
of women that
allowed me to
share my pain.
To feel it
from inside
and out. To
allow the pain
and the joy to
heal me.

So,
now from that
glimpse into
our struggles,
I'd like to
share a gift
with you. I
was extremely
honored to be
featured in
the {free}
ebook, "Heart
Centered
Living: with
intention,
growth, and
grace" that
was edited by
Deb from Home
Life
Simplified.
Deb graciously
took her to
time to gather
women who had
a story to
tell. I, along
with 18 other
women, share a
piece of my
story within
its pages. A
piece of my
heart.

To
read more
about how I
took an empty
space ~ an
empty room to
be exact ~ and
turned it into
a place to
connect with
my son, you
can download
your free copy
by clicking here.
You can
experience,
not only how I
found a bit of
hope and
solace among
the pain, but
how other
women became open
to learning
and change, or
finding their
path. How
they committed
time for self
care and self
love, and
embraced
mindfulness by
celebrating
the everyday.
You won't
want to miss
out on this
special piece
of work.Thank
you all for
listening.
For hearing
my words. For
taking the
time to see
them.xx,Gina

Thank
you so much
for stopping
by! If you
enjoyed this
post, please
join us on Facebook.
You can even
explore our
boards on Pinterest
if you are
looking for
more ways to
foster family
connections
through play
and
inspiration.